USA “A partridge in a pear tree stamp” – EFO or color changeling?
For last couple of weeks I’ve been on a business trip to Southern Finland. Fortunately it has not all been work without a play, as during the weekends I’ve had the possibility to visit all the local stamp shops. Most of the time I’ve simply looked around as most shops are specialized in Finnish stamps, but below is one of those few items I picked from one of the few worldwide approval books available. Anyone familiar with this stamp will immediately notice the bizarre color change it has. But is it a true EFO, or a color changeling?
I know that red is one of the easiest colors to fade away in sunlight, but as other colors seem as strong as with the real thing I’m not a big believer of this theory in this case.
When reviewing the stamp under high enlargement (see below pictures), I can see some moire pattern on the top text. It seems as the background color is pushing it’s way through the yellow.
A close-up of the top text. Notice how the background color is pushing it's way through on the edges of letters.
A close up also shows that red color is not completely missing. There are random, extremely tiny spots of it left on various locations. Especially the nominal value has some very clear traces of red (or more like orange) left. The effect is similar as if the printer would have run out of specific color.
A close up of nominal value inscription.
A quick look on Michel and Scott did not bring up anything related to this, so I’m feeling a bit skeptical about the authenticity this stamp… So once again I’m relying to You blog readers. Do You have any knowledge, or opinions about this? Whether real or not, this was sure worth the 15 cents I paid for it, LOL.
Join the discussion on this topic below. There are 41 responses already!
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Altho I am from the USA, I have no clue.
Just to note, that there’s lively discussion about this on StampCommunity Forums… So far the opinions range from heavily underinked variety to light/chemical damage…
Similar to Marvin’s comment on The more I learn of this hobby, the less I realize that I actually know, I fear this will be one of those cases where no clear opinion will rise up (unless several similar items, preferrably mint, show up).
Be content Keijo, only 15 cents? the worth of it, is being one of the very few mortals to own it…I have an example from Canada and I feel quite proud of it…Lol!
Fred, I like when you get so poetic… I definitely will cherish this until death do us apart (or some other event of equal magnitude occurs). LOL.
Hi All
AlthoughI am not an expert on this type of stamp, my feelings about this stamp is that it is jsut a changeling. There is a possibility that it could have been exposed to sunlight for a length of time (?) In most stamps, the colours, yellow, orange and red seem to be the most suseptible to this kind of change over time.
Would be interesting to see what others more experienced on this would say.
Chimo
Larry Matthews
Hi Larry,
I’m not an expert with changelings neither, but personally I don’t believe this is caused by exposure sunlight. In order for colors to change, the stamp usually requires quite a long amount of time in sun; and it would create other characteristics.
The first telltale would be yellowish paper. This is caused by ligning, that nearly all non-archival papers (like stamps) do contain. When exposed to oxygen in the air, ligning becomes less stable. This causes lignin to absorb more light, and when exposed to sunlight it gives off a darker color (yellowish/brown) to paper. This process starts usually in matter of hours, and the longer the exposure the more yellowish the paper will get.
The second telltale of sun damages is usually the elasticity of paper. Any stamp that has been exposed to a fair degree of sunlight will be notably brittler than normal paper. This is caused by UV included by sunlight. UV both ages and damages the fibers of the paper (similar to what it does to human skin).
As far as I can tell, the stamp shows no symptoms of the two above. The paper seems normally whitish, and I can’t notice any changes in elasticity either to the bare eye.
best,
-keijo-
Hi everyone;
Color printing is different than computer screen colors (RGB). Printing uses CMYK, Cyan (blue), Magenta (red/violet), Yellow, and Black. All colors can be made from the first three, however black must be added for proper contrast and deep colors.
The red color in this issue is made by adding a bit of Magenta to Yellow. You can verify this with this simple experiment. Open a color picker, that has CMYK capabilities, and mix these two colors and the brightness slider until it looks just right. Back off of the Magenta slider and viola you get Yellow.
This error is caused when the magenta ink container ran out of ink. It is not a true error as much as it is what is called “printers waste”. The error occured when the post office let it get sold before being destroyed.
My guess is that since it is not listed in any catalog, you could name your price and probably get several thousand bucks. Just list it as missing Magenta half-tone screen.
Happy collecting
Ken Tall Pines
Hi Ken,
I’m well famililar with the concept of CMYK… But what I don’t with certainty is what color system US stamp printers use/have used… CMYK is of course the most likely alternative (especially thinking the era of early 1970s), but would it be possible that spot colors/Pantone or similar were used with this issue? If so, then the theory of printer running out ink would become very unlikely IMHO… But like said, I’m a newbie with US stamp printing methods and seek advice from more knowledgeable.
best wishes,
-keijo-
Hi Keijo;
I just looked under a 20x high quality glass, at my copy in my album, which is unused. I say high quality, because although most folks may not know, but cheap lenses, especially high magnification lenses cause a type of distortion called “chromatic aberration” red and blue fringes on opposite sides of objects and are useless for looking at screens or checking screen angles, or for stamp work.
Most of my knowledge is from working on catalogs in an advertising dept. Worked with pantone, CMYK, and screened pantones.
I was able to identify the CMYK dots on this stamp, but it is kinda irrelevant as far as the original question from the collector who owns the stamp. Even if spot color Pantone was used, it is still a case of ran-out-of-ink. It is different from the Dag Hammershald color error of an upside down plate, except that stamp is Blk, Brn, & Yel. spot colors. Usually multicolor in the Scott catalog, means CMYK, which is the only practical way to mix color and come up with a new color.
The collector who owns it should immediately insure it for a large sum, and contact auction houses for an appraisal. This stamp could sell for 5-6 figures!!
I like reading these forums and blogs because it’s an easy way to see new stuff, and what is going on in the stamp hobby, and to make new collecting friends!
To sum things up this is definitely an error, and not a faded stamp, or a changed stamp due to chemicals, or oxidation. If you ever have a question about stamps in general, you may e-mail me. It has been a pleasure chatting with you.
Happy collecting.
Ken
PS; This blog thread has the wrong title, it should be called a golden goose in a money tree.HAHAAA!
Thanks Ken,
Your response gives the kind of in-depth knowledge I was seeking from US collectors.
Based on couple of replies I’ve received (both public & private), I’m beginning to lean towards the conclusion that this is likely an “under inked freak”. As there are still tiny traces of color left, it will be impossible to get a “missing color” certificate (from APS) though.
Re, the value… I’d say it’s always up to the markets. I agree it could sell for a nice sum (especially if certified as under inked variety), but I’m pretty much the feet-on-the-ground type of guy and consider it worth a $10-20 tops until something similar sells with big $$$. LOL.
Keijo, entertain/educate us and go through the process of selling this stamp as Ken Tall Pines describes. Prove him right or wrong. I think the fact that you have created a story with the help of your readers on your highly respected blog will add to this stamp’s value. IMHO that is worth more than the item. Pass the stamp on! Donate the money to charity, if you want. No one can ever take this chapter of the stamp’s story away from you.
@Carol… That is an interesting idea to play with… But I confess that I’m much like Gollum in Lord Of The Rings. It’s my precious, and I’d like to keep it until death due us apart. LOL. But If I ever manage to get another copy of this variety, then…
from erik ! this stamp was printed in five steps, The first color yellow then light green , red , green and black.This
means that red was printed as the third color. What does that tell you? compare with a normal printed issue and if sunlight is the reason for the lack of red you should find traces of red letters and digit under green and black as a mix of those last three colors in the printing procedure. Any help for you?
Another hint,- what about reverse printing and missing color??.. sunlight??? hmmm….
Hello guys,
It just so happens I have a copy of this same stamp with the red missing. If I can scrounge it up I will submit a pic of high quality and magnification for your perusal. I doubt that it is worth “Thousands of Dollars” as mentioned in the string above, but I do believe it is worth something more than the average copy of this stamp. I collect Christmas stamps by sheet, block, singles used and unused and EFO when I can get them…this one came rather cheaply from a local dealer for $8, and I was quite glad to part with the $8 and come home with my copy of the stamp. I will submit this and then go looking for my copy. This is fun.
Gj
OK, it took a bit and my “good” camera and lenses are at work, so I used a cheap camera for now and will resubmit a string with better images and a closeup of the lettering. I don’t believe this is an actual “color missing” error, but rather a dry ink error or as mentioned above one of the inks was out and the “mix” turned into yellow due to it being the other half of the “mix”…anyway, under magnification here it appears as if there are hints of red on my lettering too. Closer examination will provide more, but for now I leave you with MY copy of this fun stamp.
Hello again,
One more thing. I have always suspected that a chemical color changeling would have to be submitted to some sort of chemical bath (although a gaseous process may work…I take pictures of women for a living…I’m not a scientist), and my copy of this stamp is unused and has full original gum in pristine condition…so unless a gas is used, a chemical bath would be out of the question…and as for being in the sun or strong light…I just don’t think so, the balance of the colors are as bright as the fully inked copy I have displayed next to my “short on magenta” copy. Now I can’t wait to get a better pic…
Gj
@Geffrey… So another similar copy, a mint one, exists! Hooray!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I (or should I say everyone) wants to see image of your stamp. Could You please upload it to some photosharing site, and share the URL?
Hello Keijo et al,
I was sure hoping last night when I stashed the pic in html form that it would show up here…I will get it out on my ftp site and share the link tonight. I am very pleased to see your stamp and would love to find out the process that created these very cool oddities or freaks. Naturally, if this is an inking problem with the press it is as stated above “printers waste” and shouldn’t have made it out…and it is fantasy to believe that we would own unique copies if it were an inking issue…there would be the adjacent stamps that were poorly inked and up to a sheet of these might have escaped notice. I like the fact that yours is used…but I also like the fact that I own an unused copy…that will help dispel the thought that yours was submitted to some sort of chemical process when it was removed from the cover. I am curious enough now to want to submit this stamp for expert opinion. Any ideas as to the best place?
Gj
@Geffrey… I think that for US stamps APEX (American Philatelic Expertizing Service ) is the way forward. If I remember correctly, they take about 20-30$ for their opinion / certification.
In order to get the stamp listed in Scott, I think it (or copy of the certificate) should be mailed to catalog editors for review.
You detectives are so cute! Keep the story running.
Hello again Keijo (and you too Carol…thanks…I’m cute…I haven’t been “cute” for 37 years),
Well I took some nice pics at work and remembered that the computer that the art department uses at work is incompatible with mine…I’ll have to take a chip in on Monday to bring home the proper format for me to upload a couple of better images for perusal. In the meantime you may look at the stamp by taking at peek at this url below.
gj
http://www.wowway.com/~jewell10/8cent.JPG
Thanks Geffrey… Looks pretty similar to my copy
Hello Again Keijo,
I have had a chance to hack around on your website some since my last posting…very impressive.
I did bring home my pics, and they were taken in a studio for human models, so the light might not be quite right, but on my computer here at home they looked pretty much as the stamp does.
I’m thinking it is a dry printing freak, not a color omitted error, but I am looking into expertization. I thank you for your suggestion…I have downloaded the form and plan to send it in soon.
There are 3 images to look at. Taking a page out of your book I pictured the yellow example next to another mint example for comparison. There are also 2 close-up images. My number 8 shows a hint of red under it, I don’t know if that is actual “red” color that didn’t register in the right spot, but it is suspiciously not present on the yellow lettering and number. I surmise it is other color that have come together to look “red” in the image.
I’ll keep those of you who are interested posted as to the outcome of the expert opinion. If it is a dry ink issue it (the stamp) will not be worth the money to have it looked at…but then we’ll know, and knowing is worth the money. (If you follow my logic)
Gj
Well dang…I forgot the images
Here are the links
http://www.wowway.com/~jewell10/8cent.JPG
http://www.wowway.com/~jewell10/8centdetail.JPG
http://www.wowway.com/~jewell10/8centdetail2.JPG
@Geffrey… Gorgeous pictures. I definitely love how crisp the “On First Day Of…” text appears on Your copy.
It will be very interesting to hear what kind of verdict “the experts” do come up.
@Geffrey, I could only download a narrow strip at the top of the second link (8centdetail.JPG).
In 8cent.JPG, where the changeling and normal stamps are together, the green background appears more mottled on the changeling stamp. The opposite seems to be true on Keijo’s image.
The yellow color in 8centdetail2.JPG is quite a bit warmer, more orange, than in Keijo’s image. I assume this is because the lighting used in each case was different, as Geffrey noted. I see more contrast, or separation between the yellow and green, in Geffrey’s image – also due to lighting? There is an orange shadow to the left and under Geffrey’s 8 that is not in Keijo’s. The red flecks are much more apparent in Keijo’s image.
I would like an expert to guess how many sheets apart in the press run these specimens were.
Hello again Carol, Keijo et al,
Ms Carol, your observation on the “warmth” was noted by me too…it is one of the reasons I think this is an inking freak. If you look at the top text you will also note that it is warmer and redder, especially near the top of the text. The close-up of the 8 is woefully blurry…I’m used to bigger subjects (a full grown woman, for instance) and would like to have another go at it.
As to the blotchy back ground? I think it is another reason to suspect a dry ink run. As a collector of Christmas issues I have hundreds of these stamps (the properly inked variety, that is) and they are all deep green, but under bright light and magnification you can see that the ink was put on in small blotches…it’s just darker on the fully inked examples. I suspect that the lighting played a role in the appearance of the blotches, because while noticeable to the naked eye, they are not the first thing you notice when looking at the stamp. The studio is cold and heartless…and a model is either “perfect” or she hates me…I suppose the bright light made the blotchy stamp hate me.
The 2nd picture was only a detail of the top portion of the text to show how there as a hint of red and not a lot of green overlay like Keijo’s example. What loaded was the full extent of the image.
I too would be curious where these stamps were located in relationship to each other in the run, but without some numerical designation on each stamp there is probably no way that anyone could speculate how many sheets or stamps separated these two examples. I believe plating of this issue would be impossible. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to know.
More to come! Next I send it in.
Gj
All the colors are changed, duller, even white. I’d say chemical damage. Try bleach on an unchanged stamp…
@Fred… On my stamps case it’s just scanner playing it’s trick. In real life they are very identical…
Re, theory about bleach. There’s no “glow” effect under UV/ black light. So if it’s been bleached, then it’s been some sorts of chlorine free bleach.
Hi everyone;
Watching this thread develop is like playing the telephone game. HAHAHA! I have worked with printers and press set-up operators. You guys are somehow stuck in the early 1900s. The kinds of inks used in those days that so easily changed (aniline inks) haven’t been used for many decades! This whole discussion about changed colors is totally not plausible.
As far as faded stamps goes, that is also not possible. Take a scan of this issue, (a normal one) and open in a color editor, like photoshop or similar. Find the menu command for Hue & Saturation. Reduce the saturation by say 30-50%. As you increase this effect you will see what sunlight fading does. Guess what… it fades all colors, not just one!
You have been reading too many stamp collecting handbooks. If their first printing was before year 2000 they are useless and out of date. Graphics and printing technology moves on and these handbooks are okay for stamps printed many decades ago.
To Eric;
This stamp was NOT “PRINTED IN FIVE STEPS”. This process would be far too expensive. Green ink is NOT USED for full color printing, Green is made by mixing blue and yellow dots. Pantone colors are NEVER USED for full color printing. Full color printing uses a continuous web (giant roll of paper). there are four plates, one for each of the colors Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, & Black. The paper passes between the first printing plate cylinder and a pressure roller to force the ink out of the tiny dent shaped dots in the plate and onto the paper. It then is passed thru a dryer before contact with the next color plate cylinder. It then repeats this three more times. And finally is cut into sheets.
Fred Bauder;
Nearly all color freaks are due to under/over inked plates. Presses run very fast, so even if the ink is a little too thick it can cause a problem with flow rate. Other problems could be the wrong ink loaded at the plate, Yellow at the Cyan plate cylinder. Pantone colors are only used when the design call for two or three colors only, and can also be the incorrect color. Pantone presses must be completely cleaned of all ink after every run. If not done correctly (as often happens) it will result in one color mixing with another to produce the wrong color.
Since the last several decades, colors that change due to exposure are very unlikely.
I have been listing color varieties in my web-store for a long time now. The George Marshall (Scott #1289), comes in two distinct different colors. I’m sure that you have seen them if you have many copies of this stamp. Scott has finally listed this variety as “Black Olive” instead of “Deep Olive”. There are dozens of other examples that Scott has not listed.
Well gotta get back to sorting this huge pile of stamps, so have fun collecting everyone.
Ken Tall Pines
Alas!…at last someone put everybody on its place…W O W!
To quote Fred: “LOL”
Your stamp appears to be a printing freak caused by severe under-inking of the red.
There is a lot of useful information posted above regarding color printing/mixing. Some of the information is applicable to the printing of this stamp, but some of it is not.
This stamp was printed by the Andreotti Gravure Press in a 6-step process (6 plates for 6 different colors, and I believe the 7th step was the tagging). Any statements regarding CMYK corresponding to 4 plates/steps does NOT apply to this press (nor to any stamps printed during that era and before by BEP).
@Kim… With BEP I assume you refer to U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing?
Speaking of printers of US stamps, what about the self-stick glues they use? I heard that you can predict if a stamp is soakable in water if you know which printer it came from.
@Carol… As far as I know, that is true (at least for now).
Don’t assume…just do it! and bonne chance….avec plaisir
Yes, BEP = Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
Regarding ease of soaking/removing self-stick stamps corresponding to printer, that will no longer be a reliable factor. USPS (United State Postal Service) no longer specifies the water-soluble layer in its contracts with private printers. Therefore it is up to the supplier. And since it is cheaper to produce stamps without the additional layer…
There are several websites that document the soakability of US self-adhesives as well as suggestions for the more difficult stamps. You may find those useful, especially in setting aside the problem stamps for when you have more time.
Regarding the colors (names are MY approximations): yellow, red, “gray”, light green, dark green, and black. After that, the tagging was applied. I’m not sure why my color sequence is slightly different from Erik’s list.
As far as I know, reverse printing of colors would not be possible with the Andreotti Press.
Hello,
I’m Hossein from Iran.I can offer you birds philatelic materials.
best Regards,
hossein,
Hi Hossein,
please see my exchange page.
with regards,
-keijo-